Pretty Please with a Pug on Top
by new perspective
Summary: Nine-year-old Massie Block doesn't take "no" and "soon" for answers. She wants her pug, and she wants him now! Set right after Charmed & Dangerous.


It didn't matter that it was LBR times 10 to fog up glass with your breath. Massie Block pressed her nose to the glass, staring at the Maltese and German shepherd puppies wrestling. A tacky rubber ball sat next to their dog dish, rolling around as they batted at each other with miniscule paws. The kibble was overflowing, and bits were strewn around their tiny cage. She almost felt bad for them - they were so cramped in the cage, and those cheap dog toys made everything look so…_tacky_.

Massie adored it.

Her parents had promised that they would go to the Westchester Dog Breeders' Kennel as soon as they returned from France, and that was approximately three days ago. She was excited to the point where, as soon as she returned from Merri-Lee Marvil's New Year Yves' party, she began to put together her outfit for getting her pug. Massie had decided a week ago on the white Ralph Lauren skinny jeans, black sequined hoodie and blouse, stately black flats (with a bow on each!), and brand-new charm bracelet, which she wore to meet her new pug.

Unfortunately, the first thing they did when they returned was to present her with a New Years' gift – a tiny, gold pug charm to replace the pig charm from her Christmas present. It took them another four days before they finally took her to the kennel. That was four days' worth of begging, which was more begging than she had ever done in her life. Combined.

-x-

"Mo-om, when are we going to the kennel?"

"Sweetheart, I still have to finish registering you for Octavian Country Day." Kendra Block turned around, staring at her diminutive daughter. "Your father's already paid for this semester's tuition, but I still have to send them your transcripts from PMS. Also, don't you want Daddy to be there when you get your new pug?"

Massie pouted, crossing her arms. Even though she was very mature for a nine-year-old (she had even proved it to her mother by buying her a pretty Hermes scarf for Christmas, only with Isaac's help), mentioning William Block never failed to make her feel ashamed for begging so much.

It wasn't her fault, though! She had been begging her parents for months to buy her a pug for Christmas. Plus, her parents had promised that they would get her the pug ASAP, especially after the mistaken bacon incident.

"Puh-lease, Mom?" she gave Kendra her best "I-didn't-just-play-dress-up-in-your-vintage-Dior" face. "You promised!"

Her mother sighed, rubbing her temples with her thumbs. She got up and took Massie's hand towards the kitchen, plopping her down on one of the stools by the counter. After listening to many accusations of "you promised!" and "pretty please with a bow on top", Kendra, dressed in a simple cashmere sweater set and Diane von Furstenberg pants, took a seat next to her. Their live-in housekeeper, Inez, hurried over to answer Kendra's requests for a glass of milk and vanilla bean sugar cookies for Massie, and an aspirin with some chamomile tea. After downing the pill and a cup of tea, she finally spoke.

"Massie, honey, we'll get you your pug tomorrow. Just have some patience, okay?"

She pouted again, but it was better than the promises of 'soon' that they had given her – promises that were emptier than yesterday's cup of salted caramel hot chocolate. It was better than nothing.

-x-

She barely made notice of her parents, who were talking to the perky salesgirl at the counter about being first-time dog owners. Moving from window to window, her amber eyes flitted over a wide range of puppies. After turning her back on a particularly fluffy toy poodle, Massie saw him.

Cowering behind a trio of squabbling, squash-faced beige pugs was a tiny black pug. He sneezed, coming out of the fetal position for a second just to shake his head. There was absolutely no way that he could be bigger than a Tory Burch clutch, but he couldn't have been smaller than her father's hand. He was absolutely adorable.

"Daddy! Come, quick!"

In a flash, William was by her side. "What is it, sweetie? Do you want one of those beige pugs?"

She shook her head vehemently, and pointed at the shivering black pug. "I want him."

The three adults exchanged a look, and the perky salesgirl made a move to open the glass pen that puppies were enclosed in. She pulled a small purple square of cashmere out of her back pocket, and wrapped up the shivering puppy. He promptly fell asleep in the impromptu blanket, and the salesgirl glanced at Massie.

"Are you sure about him? He might be a handful to take care of. He gets sick pretty easily, and since it is winter, those sicknesses might worsen."

William and Kendra looked at their daughter, whose arms were crossed defiantly. Massie glared at the salesgirl, who was tucking in a corner of the cashmere to keep her new pug warm.

"He's a fighter," she haughtily declared, marching over and scooping the pug up into her arms. "And I'm going to name him Bean."

In the soft swaddle of cashmere and the tight cradle of black cotton-clothed arms, Bean let out a contented sigh.

* * *

**This is just about the weirdest feeling ever, since I haven't published anything on FF in about 3 years. Happy holidays, y'all! Hope you enjoyed the tale. :)**


End file.
